Barn Suite, Penn

Barn Suite is a self-contained barn conversion at Penbury Farm on Witheridge Lane, in the Buckinghamshire village of Penn, and the format is most of what makes it work with a dog. You get the whole space to yourself with your own door onto the yard, so there is no lobby to cross, no corridor to share and no lift to negotiate with a wet dog at the end of a walk.

Dogs stay free here - the property does not charge a pet fee - and up to three are accepted, though no weight or breed limit is published. What dog owners describe is a place that is relaxed about pets rather than merely tolerant of them, and guests have stayed here with more than one dog. Key collection has been awkward for some arrivals, though the owners sorted it out on the day.

The setting is the other draw. Woodland sits directly opposite the barn and the lanes around Penn open onto common land and field paths, so the first walk of the day starts at the door rather than after a drive. Village pubs are within walking distance, and Penn sits in the Chilterns close enough to Beaconsfield and High Wycombe to be an easy run out of London.

Two things are worth knowing before you book. The outdoor space is dated and needs a tidy, with broken paving slabs that are awkward for anyone unsteady on their feet, and dog mess outside the accommodation has not always been cleared before guests arrive, which is an odd blind spot at a property that otherwise makes dogs so welcome. Inside, the bathroom is due an update and the kitchen is compact, though both are clean and everything works. The main living space is generous and the barn is warm.

Best suited to a couple or small family wanting a quiet Chilterns base with the dog, who value a private front door and woodland on the doorstep more than a recently refurbished bathroom.